Google Play Games is On Its Way!

Author Dragan Berak
14.5.2013. | 02:35

It sounds like Google is going to take on multiplayer gaming in a big way. They’re developing a plug-in gaming service that handles every common multiplayer feature gamers have come to expect. Developers’ lives should get a whole lot easier, and multiplayer gaming on Android should get a whole lot better.

Are you an Android user who’s been hoping for a service similar to the iOs GameCenter or XBox Live on your phone? Fear not, your wishes may be granted sooner than you think. The intrepid hackers at Android Police got their hands on an advanced copy of a new Google Play build. Games were the glaring omission when Google Play launched last year. But they discovered something very interesting when they stripped the code down to its bare bones: evidence that Google Play Games is on its way. The big reveals include:

Social Integration: There’s going to be a heavy Google+ presence in the new service. You’re going to sign in using your Google+ profile and it will be your central identity while playing. You’ll be able to send game invitations to your friends and compare performances on leader boards.

In-Game Chatting: An extension of the social capabilities, but a big enough one that deserves its own bullet point. Based on their evidence there’s going to be an in-game chat feature. So there’s no need to switch in and out of your app to chirp your friend’s terrible performance.

Cloud Capabilities: Google Play Games will sync your save data on its servers the same way it syncs your Mail, Calendar or contact information. So your game saves won’t take up any precious hard drive room.

It’s important to note that none of this stuff works yet, not even in the leak obtained by Android Police. But there’s evidence strongly suggesting all of these things will function in the leak’s code. And as The Verge and TechCrunch aptly point out, Google’s annual I/O conference is this week, so we should be hearing more about this new feature soon.